WACREN to be the ‘nerve centre’ for cyber threat intelligence for R&E community

WACREN is set to become the go-to regional hub for cyber threat intelligence in the ECOWAS and Central African Regions, as it has deployed critical infrastructure to support resilience against cyber threats for the research and education community. The milestone is emerging from a new project to strengthen the response of the research and education community against cyber threats. 

With the successful integration of Shadowserver’s daily threat intelligence feeds into WACREN’s infrastructure via an IntelMQ node, WACREN is now positioned to serve as a reliable backbone for information sharing and security analysis in the region. 

This will yield far-reaching benefits to institutions and member RENs connected to WACREN and participating in TrustBroker Africa. R&E institutions will gain timely, actionable insights into cyber threats targeting their networks. This will enable them to detect and respond to malware infections, botnet activity, and other vulnerabilities before severe damage occurs.

By automating the flow of threat data, IntelMQ supports faster and more informed incident response, helping IT teams identify compromised systems and take swift corrective action. Over time, institutions can improve their cybersecurity posture by addressing common weaknesses such as exposed services or outdated software.

The platform provides a practical learning environment, allowing local cybersecurity teams to develop hands-on threat analysis and response skills. As part of WACREN’s regional threat-sharing network, institutions will benefit from shared situational awareness, regional cooperation, and a unified defence against cyberattacks.

The Regional Cyber Threat Intelligence Workshop will build capacity in using threat intelligence for operational response. Participants will learn how to consume and process threat feeds, implement IntelMQ, and develop response playbooks tailored to their environments.

By combining technology with training and collaboration, WACREN will empower its NRENs and their member institutions to move from reactive to proactive cybersecurity.